1. What is e-waste?

E-waste refers to electronic equipment that has been damaged, discarded or retired. E-waste includes cell phones, computers, servers, cables, wires, large electronic equipment, refrigerators, entertainment devices, handheld devices like calculators. Such electronic equipment contains several materials that are hazardous to environment and human health and need to be disposed according to strict controls.

E-waste disposal typically consists of collecting the equipment, safely dismantling it, segregating the reusable parts and the non-reusable parts and then disposing the non-reusable parts by destroying them. Destruction of non-reusable e-waste must be in done in secure conditions with minimum exposure to humans, soil, water and air.

2. What are the components of e-waste?

E-waste typically has the following types of materials in them

• Lead and Tin - These metals are used as solders and all electronic equipment will have them in some quantity.
• Copper - Wires are typically made of copper. Printed circuit board tracks are typically copper.
• Substances found in large quantities - These are primary components of equipment, that is the equipment will be made of one or more of these: Epoxy resin, PVC, plastics, lead, fiber glass, PCBs, tin, copper, carbon, aluminum, iron, silicon, beryllium.
• Substances found in small amounts - Arsenic, antimony, barium, boron, cobalt, gold, gallium, lithium, manganese, nickel, silver, platinum, titanium, selenium, and many others.

3. What are the health hazards of e-waste?

E-waste contains many toxic compounds which may not be active by themselves but as the equipment deteriorates and as these compounds come in contact with soil, water and air, they become reactive and cause health problems. Heavy metal poisoning is a serious hazard for humans, animals and plants. As the soil and water bodies get polluted by the heavy metals found in the waste electronic equipment, these heavy metals find their way into our bodies through food and water. Heavy metals accumulate over time and damage liver, kidneys, brain and nervous systems leading to shut down of organ systems and eventually, death. Many compounds are known to cause cancer as well. Others cause disruptions in food absorption leading to deficiencies like calcium deficiency.

• Lead, copper, gold, lithium, platinum, arsenic, mercury, tin and other heavy metals - Accumulation in soft tissues of the body through food, water, industrial exposure and air. Causes cellular-level damage over time, leading to functional loss and eventually death.
• Chromium and nickel - Are known to cause cancer
• Cadmium - Blocks calcium absorption, leading to brittle bones and eventually death
• Sulphur - Damages tissues in animals and when released into atmosphere in gaseous form, combines with water molecules and creates sulphuric acid (this is also known as acid rain)

4. What is hazardous waste?

Hazardous wastes include the heavy metals and several toxic chemicals that are used in the development and manufacture of electronic equipment and industrial equipment. Infectious medical waste is also labelled as hazardous waste. Radioactive materials like spent nuclear fuel rods that have long half-lives are also classified as hazardous waste materials.

Something is hazardous if it is flammable or catches fire easily. If it is unstable in normal conditions and requires special storage. If the substance has corrosive properties like acids and alkaline solutions. Or if the substance causes damage when absorbed. Heavy metals and pesticides are examples of toxic hazards.

Electronic waste is especially hazardous because of the large quantity in which it is found and because it is generated not just in factories but in every home in the world. From fused bulbs to old thermometers to replaced refrigerators, all make up e-waste which contains hazardous compounds.

5. What is safe disposal of e-waste?

E-waste has to be disposed in a fashion wherein only minimum amount of the waste comes in contact with air, water, soil, humans, animals and plants. Safe disposal process involves safe collection, safe reclaiming of recyclable material, proper classification of residual material. The idea is that maximum of e-waste must be recycled and leave very little residual waste.

In the residual waste, the final disposal of each substance is done according to method prescribed for its disposal. This means that if residual waste contains lead, copper, arsenic and solvent, then these will not be disposed as a single package. The disposal method will separate these substances and then dispose each one separately. Safe disposal means that as much as possible humans and other life forms, soil and water are not exposed to the waste materials during the disposal process.

6. Why e-waste should not be disposed in municipal bins or elsewhere?

Municipal waste dispensers are not equipped to handle e-waste. When waste is segregated at the waste management plants run by town corporations, e-waste is typically disposed in landfills because there is no process or manpower to strip and reclaim electronic and electrical scrap. In the landfills, as the waste deteriorates, the heavy metals and other chemical compounds in the equipment start to leach into the soil. Soil becomes concentrated in lead, copper, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, mercury and other heavy metals. Soon these reach the water tables.

If E-waste is disposed through municipal incineration process, many toxic compounds are released into the air as the equipment burns. This causes air pollution leading to diseases ranging from respiratory distress to cancer. If disposed near water bodies or inside water bodies, electronic waste will poison the water sources.

When soil and water are polluted, they in turn pollute the plants and poison the plant-eating animals. Humans consume polluted plants, meat and water and end up with cell-level, mostly irreversible, damage caused by the toxic materials.

7. Why e-waste management company must be contacted when you want to dispose electronic waste?

E-waste management company like Green India Recyclers is equipped with trained staff and machines for safely collecting, stripping and disposing electronic equipment in the most non-polluting methods. At Green India Recyclers we believe in maximum recycling and reuse of electronic equipment and minimizing outright disposal. Our processes are geared towards maximum material recovery and maximum reuse potential.

When you give your e-waste to Green India Recyclers you can be assured of responsible recovery, responsible recycling, high data security, and lowest possible environmental disruption.

Become a responsible, environmentally conscious citizen today. Whether you have a few electronic equipment to dispose from home or you want to replace hundreds of staff computers at your office campus, call us and let us help you dispose your electronic waste with minimum negative impact to the natural world.s